Postgraduate research partnerships receive €3 million investment boost from Research Ireland

Faster, safer, and more effective treatment of epilepsy, Dungeons & Dragons–inspired toolkits for neurodiverse adolescents, and data-driven insights on Ireland’s blanket bogs among projects funded. 

Research Ireland has today announced €3 million in funding to support 38 enterprise-linked postgraduate research projects, through its Enterprise Partnership Scheme. This investment follows on from funding of €4.4 million for 46 postdoctoral enterprise-linked fellowships, announced last month.   

The funded postgraduate projects announced today will tackle a wide range of topical issues, from improving patient care, to preserving Ireland’s natural heritage, and fostering inclusive communities. Through this co-funded model, postgraduate researchers gain valuable experience in applying their expertise beyond academia, while enterprise partners benefit from fresh perspectives and innovative solutions aligned with their goals. 

Announcing the investment, Dr Diarmuid O’Brien, CEO of Research Ireland, commented: 

Research Ireland is proud to support 35 PhD students and 3 research master’s students through this year’s Enterprise Partnership Postgraduate Scheme. Each early-career researcher will collaborate with a dedicated enterprise partner to tackle real-world economic and societal challenges. The projects announced today will connect emerging talent with organisations across the public and private sectors, creating collaborations that deliver impact for both academia and enterprise.

Some project highlights from today’s announcement include: 

• ‘EpiBreak: Fabrication of novel mucus penetrating nano-carriers for nose-to-brain delivery of anti-seizure medications (ASMs)’: Dylan Maguire (Dublin City University), in partnership with Epilepsy Ireland, will develop biodegradable nanoparticles for nasal delivery of anti-seizure medication for faster, safer, and more effective treatment of epilepsy.
• ‘Strengths in action: Exploring the Impact of a Co-Designed Strength-Based Dungeons & Dragons Toolkit to Support the Social, Emotional, and Psychological Development of Neurodiverse Adolescents’: Angel Harper (RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences), in partnership with Foróige, will work with young people, parents and youth workers to create a Dungeons & Dragons strength-based intervention that helps foster confidence, social skills, and emotional wellbeing in neurodiverse teens.
• ‘Adsorption performance modelling of SF6  on activated carbon fiber cloth at scale for industrial applications’: Ataklti Kahsay Wolday (Munster Technological University), in partnership with Moynihan Process Engineering, will combine experimental testing and advanced modelling to develop and scale up a new technology to capture and monitor sulfure hexaflouride, an industrial greenhouse gas, supporting Ireland’s efforts to reduce harmful emissions.
• ‘Detecting blanket bog ecology across spatial scales: integrating a novel ground-based dataset with remote sensing technology [BOGSPEC]’: Eli Kane (Trinity College Dublin), in partnership with National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage, will combine on-the-ground surveys with drone and satellite data to map the health of Ireland’s blanket bogs and support large-scale conservation and restoration efforts for this unique ecosystem.
• ‘A new method for making medicinally relevant organophosphorus compounds’: Lauren Walsh (University College Cork), in partnership with Eli Lilly Kinsale Ltd, will develop an innovative strategy to control the structure of phosphorous-containing molecules to create more effective medicines for diseases such as HIV and cancer. 

The 38 funded projects will be carried out across 11 institutions – Atlantic Technological University (1), Dublin City University (4), Munster Technological University (1), RSCI University of Medicine and Health Sciences (4), South East Technological University (1), Technological University Dublin (3), Trinity College Dublin (6), University College Cork (9), University College Dublin (6), University of Galway (2) and University of Limerick (1). 

32 distinct enterprise partners are involved in this year’s scheme, and range from multinational corporations to indigenous SMEs, public-sector agencies, charities, and non-governmental organisations.  

Photo caption: Among the funded Enterprise Partnership Scheme (Postgraduate) projects is ‘Strengths in action: Exploring the Impact of a Co-Designed Strength-Based Dungeons & Dragons Toolkit to Support the Social, Emotional, and Psychological Development of Neurodiverse Adolescents’: Angel Harper (RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences), in partnership with Foróige. Image credit: Cathal Crowther.